Fixation
by ggirl7222
Summary: Season: 4 Episode: 8 After the Show references. Howard Delhomme is fixated on Catherine Willows and he will do what it takes to make sure she knows. ...Grillows...
1. Chapter 1

Title: Fixation

Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Rating: M to be safe

Summary: Season: 4 Episode: 8 After the Show references. Howard Delhomme is fixated on Catherine Willows and he will do what it takes to make sure she knows. ...Grillows...

* * *

><p>"I'll talk." He smirked at Sara "But only for the one in the next room. The pretty one;"<p>

Sara sighed and looked over at Brass. Brass nodded and left the room

Catherine looked up from her camera. "I'd still like to know who 'anyone' is."

Gil nodded bagging the table fragment Howard used to cut himself "You want to take a wild guess."

"Catherine." He entered the interrogation room Catherine and Gil were processing.

Catherine turned to Brass "What's up, did he confess?"

"No, he's refusing to talk."

"Refusing?" Gil added to the conversation

"He wants you." He looked at Catherine

"What?" She turned and looked at Gil and then back to Brass "Me?"

Brass nodded "He say's he won't talk to anyone but you."

"Okay." Catherine handed Gil the camera. "I'll see what I can get out of him."

"Good." Brass sighed "Because we can't hold him for much longer unless we get something out of him."

Gil watched as Catherine disappeared. "Do you think this is a good idea?"

Brass shrugged "What option do we have, we suspect him for this and if we let him go, he could slip from or hands and someone else will go missing. We have to do what it takes."

"What it takes?" Gil repeated "At what cost?"

Brass was confused "I 'm not sure what you're talking about Gil, did I miss something?"

Gil didn't respond. He had seen the way Howard looked at Catherine. He knew what that look meant, and he hated it when men looked at her like that.

"I just hope that he's not playing us. I don't want to have to deal with the consequences that come with playing his game."

Brass nodded "If he doesn't start talking soon we won't have to worry about playing his game because he's going to walk out of here."

Gil nodded "Well, let's go see what he has to say."

Brass followed as Gil headed toward the interrogation room.

"Mr. Delhomme." Catherine sat down across from Howard

"Hi." He smiled "I'm glad you could come."

"Did I have a choice?" Catherine replied

"Of course you did. Don't we all have a choice?"

"I guess;" Catherine nodded and changed the subject, "I never meant to hurt anyone." She quoted him "What do you mean? Who were you talking about?"

Howard sat back in his chair. "No one specific."

"No one specific;" Catherine mimicked "Why did you call the police?"

"I was having a bad day." He retorted "I was feeling guilty."

"About what;"

"You're very beautiful." He ignored her "You know that right? Your beauty alone could get you very far in life, you could please a lot of people."

Catherine didn't respond "Mr. Delhomme, you requested to speak with me, what is it that you wanted to tell me?"

"I saw you." He leaned forward watching Gil out of the corner of his eye "I saw you with him. And I thought to myself. I have to meet this women, I have to meet this beauty before me."

Catherine sat back in her chair as he continued

"There's something about you, you attract. You have an air that drew me to you." He looked over at Gil "He knows what I mean. I can see it in the way he looks at you. The way he acts around you."

Gil cleared his throat "Mr. Delhomme." He stepped forward taking a seat at the table with Catherine "Let's talk about the newspaper clippings in your home."

"You seem angry. Are you angry Mr..." he paused; waiting for Gil to give his name.

"Grissom;" Gil spoke

"Mr. Grissom;" Howard smiled "I hope I didn't upset you with my comments. It's not my intention to step on your toes. But you have to admit she is…"

"Why did you have all the clippings of Julie Waters in you home?"

"Is it a crime to follow the news?" Howard glared at Gil

"It is if you are the reason for the news." Gil replied

"It seemed a bit obsessive." Catherine added breaking the glare between Howard and Gil

"Not obsessive." Howard sat back again "Just curiosity, she's a beautiful girl. It's a shame what happened to her."

"What happened to her?" Gil dissected his comment "Do you know what that is?"

"I'm sorry." Howard replied refusing to take his eyes off Catherine.

"You said it's a shame what happened to her. What did you mean?"

"She's missing,. The evil in Vegas would eat her alive she's an attractvie women. If someone took her; she doesn't stand a chance."

"Someone like you?" Gil snapped as jealousy and anger rose inside of him

"I'm not a bad person." Howard responded with a smirk on his face "When can I go home?"

Gil sighed and looked at Catherine. They still had nothing and they couldn't keep him any longer. "You're free to go."

Gil and Catherine stood up as the officer led Howard out of the room

"It was my pleasure." Howard stopped; turning to speak to Catherine.

Gil watched as they led him away.

"Well that was a waste of time." Catherine walked past Gil and headed toward the break room.

"He wasn't going to tell us anything anyway." Gil followed

"Not with you and your attitude in there." She quipped

"What?" Gil sat down

"Your attitude stinks." She repeated "He played with you because he could smell it from a mile away."

Gil nodded "This guy likes to be in control. Someone needed to take that away from him."

"Well you didn't and we are no closer to finding out if he is connected to the disappearance of Julie Waters."

"Then we do what we can with what we have."

Catherine nodded "You tell that to Nick and Sara. It's their case. I'm going home."

He looked at his watch and nodded "I'll see you later."

* * *

><p>Howard watched as Catherine left the parking lot in her vehicle. Putting his camera on the seat next to him and he put his car in drive and pulled out one car behind her.<p>

"You have a beauty, that can't be described." Howard spoke to himself "It's only a matter of time."

Catherine pulled into her driveway, unaware that Howard was following her.

Howard pulled to the curb and watched as she exited her car and entered her house; taking her picture as she walked.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Fixation

Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Rating: M to be safe

Summary: Season: 4 Episode: 8 After the Show references. Howard Delhomme is fixated on Catherine Willows and he will do what it takes to make sure she knows. ...Grillows...

6

Chapter 2

* * *

><p>"I'll call you in the morning if I am going to be late, Lindsey has to be at school by seven, for her field trip. I'm not sure If I'll be able to get away in time to drop her off."<p>

Catherine's mother nodded "I'll make sure she gets there Cath, relax."

"I'm relaxed." Catherine sighed "I'm just making sure, I said goodbye to her before she went to bed, I told her I might not be able to drop her off so she won't give you any trouble if I don't show up."

"She's going to be fine, I'll get her there on time." Lily replied

Catherine nodded "I've got to get going. Gil will kill me if I am late again."

"Hey hun?" Lily called "I was hoping you and I could spend some time together when you get off tomorrow."

Catherine took a moment and stopped what she was doing "Of course." she smiled at her mother "We haven't done that in awhile. It would be nice."

Lily smiled back "I'll see you in the morning then."

Catherine nodded " Yeah."

* * *

><p>Gil was sitting in the break room waiting for his team to arrive.<p>

"Hey, sorry I'm late." Warrick raced into the break room.

Gil nodded his head to greet him "Catherine's not here yet either." he stood up and handed Sara and Nick a small slip of paper "You two are still on the Water's case, I want you to follow up with the findings at the Delhomme residence." he made his way around the table "And Warrick, you have a 419 out of Grante Blvd, victim was found in the bathroom, alleged overdose, but I'm sending you in to find out."

Warrick took his assignment and quickly disappeared.

Gil took the remaining files he had laid out on the table, glanced at his watch and headed toward his office.

After arriving in his office he picked up his phone and dialed the familiar phone number.

"Hello?" Lily answered the phone

"Lily?" Gil smiled "It's Gil, I was wondering if Catherine had left yet?"

Lily smiled at the sound of his voice "Gil Grissom, how are you?"

"I'm good, how about you."

Lily nodded knowing Gil couldn't see her "I'm pretty good." she paused "Catherine left already, she was running late. My fault;" she lied "You can try her cell, but she should be there any minute."

Gil sighed " Okay. Thanks Lily." he thanked her "It was nice talking to you, we will have to catch up soon."

"You should have breakfast with Cath and I in the morning."

Gil was caught of guard by her invitation but was more then thrilled to accept "Yeah, that would be nice."

"Catherine will fill you in." Lily replied "I'll see you in the morning."

Gil hung up with Lily and immediately dialed Catherine's cell number.

* * *

><p>Catherine was parked at a stop light when her cell phone rang.<p>

"Willows." she answered

"Cath?" Gil spoke "Are you going to grace me with your presence any time soon?"

Catherine sighed "Yes, I'm sorry. I'm two blocks away."

"Well I sent the team out, but I volunteered you to stay back and help me catch up on case filing and reports."

"Joy." Catherine smiled "I'll be there in about three minutes." she added closing her phone.

Catherine pulled into the parking lot of headquarters and quickly climbed out of her car.

She got halfway and remembered she didn't have her purse. "damn it." she whispered to herself and turned back around.

She reached her vehicle and unlocked the drivers side door. Her purse wasn't on the seat next to her.

Catherine shut the door and opened the passenger door behind the drivers seat. "What?" she muttered to herself, unable to remember throwing her purse in the back. Catherine leaned closer into the vehicle and reached towards her purse that lay on the floor behind the passengers seat.

"Having trouble?" she heard a voice behind her as she grabbed her purse and proceeded to straighten up. Not thinking much of what the voice sounded like she turned around hoping to see a friendly face.

"Mr. Delhomme?" she said his name more like a question. "What.." she began but was unable to finish when she felt him press against her and an electric shock was sent through her body.

Catherine dropped her purse and was rendered speechless, underneath her, her knees buckled. Howard looked around as her body fell into his arms. He pushed her into the back seat of her vehicle, climbed and drove away.

* * *

><p>Gil looked at his watch and realized that he had lost track of the three minutes and that it had turned into twenty. He closed the folder he was reading and took of his glasses to rub his eyes.<p>

Pushing back from his desk he stood up and looked at his cell phone. No recent calls had come in. Gil slid the phone back into his pocket and left his office.

"Hey." he stuck his head into the lab where Hodges was hard at work "Have you seen Catherine?"

Hodges didn't look up from his microscope "Nope. Not yet."

Gil nodded and continued down the hall toward the break room. He quickly looked in the windows and saw that the break room held one occupant and it wasn't Catherine.

Gil pulled out his cell phone and headed back toward his office, dialing as he went. Catherine's phone rang several times and then her voice mail came on.

Gil didn't leave a message he hung up the phone and tried again. By this time he had taken a detour and was heading toward the entrance of the lab. "Judy?" he stopped at reception as Catherine's voice mail came on again. "Did you happen to notice Catherine come in?"

Judy was finishing up a call " No sir." she smiled

Gil sighed and removed the phone from his ear. He paused for a second and then headed toward the parking lot. Once outside he began walking through it looking for her vehicle. He pulled the phone out once more and dialed her cell number again.

"Where are you?" he whispered to himself heading back inside.

"Getting some fresh air?" Brass pulled up in his car.

"No." Gil stopped and waited for him to walk inside "I can't find Catherine."

"She hasn't come in yet?"

Gil shook his head as the two men walked past reception "No, I talked to her a half hour ago and she said she was three minutes away. She said she be right here, I keep calling her cell and she's not picking up."

Brass stopped as Gil reached his office. "Have you called her mother? Maybe she had to go back home."

"I don't want to worry her, if I don't need to. Besides I already talked to her earlier, she told me that Catherine was on her way in."

"So what do you want to do. It's your call."

Gil sighed "All issued phones come with tracking."

"So does her vehicle." Brass nodded "I'll make a few calls."

Gil nodded and followed Brass to his office, he took a seat across from him and waited patiently.

* * *

><p>Catherine's eyes darted open as the feeling in her body returned. She slowly sat up putting a hand to her throbbing head.<p>

"Hello?" she looked around as her eyes adjusted to the dimly lit room.

"It's nice to see that sparkle in those beautiful eyes."

Catherine felt her way around the floor to find the wall and tried to stand up.

"Relax." Howard spoke, I had subdue you. "Your body is still weak. Save your energy."

"Where are we?" She asked sliding back to the floor. "What am I doing here?"

"I told you how I felt." he spoke as he hung the photographs in front of him. "I couldn't get you off my mind. You're beauty, your body. I had to photograph you."

Catherine tried to stand up again. "Where are we?"

"If you are worried us being interrupted, I can assure you we will..."

"I'm not worried about that!" Catherine cut him off " I'm worried about the people that will be looking for me and what they'll do to you when they find us."

Howard smiled hanging his last picture "No one is looking for us."

Catherine propped herself against the wall and watched

"Would you like something for the pain?" he asked referring to her headache

"Are you kidding?" she replied "I'm not taking anything you give me."

"I won't hurt you Catherine." he spoke to her as if they had been friends for years.

"Hurt me." she whispered "Like you hurt Julie?"

Howard shook his head "I don't think we are at that point in our relationship to talk about the other women in my life."

"Our relationship?" she repeated his words

Howard walked toward her, knelt down and put his hand on hers "Here." he smiled "Let me help you."

"Don't touch me." she pulled her hand back from his touch.

"Is there any reason to be that way?" he stood up "I've been nothing but good to you."

Catherine ignored him and tried once more to stand on her own to feet.

"Just stay away from me" she sneered

Howard didn't reply with words, instead he raised his hand and slapped her.

Catherine stumbled backward.

"That's hardly the way to talk to someone who just wants to be your friend."

Catherine looked up at him as her eyes began to water.

"That's better." he smiled; extending his hand again.

* * *

><p>"Well?" Gil asked the second Brass hung up his phone.<p>

"Her vehicle was found, about six miles from here, her phone, and her keys are still in her purse. The purse was found in the back seat."

Gil shook his head "Is she.."

"She's not there." Brass cut him off. "There was no sign of a struggle, there's nothing to indicated she has been harmed."

"But she's missing. So it's a pretty good bet that she's not being pampered."

Brass nodded "You have to calm down."

"We need to get the team back here." Gil snapped

Brass nodded

"Make the calls you need. "I'll get a task force ready, we will meet in twenty minutes."

Gil nodded and pulled out his cell phone as far as he was concerned all other cases were to be put on hold.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Fixation

Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Rating: M to be safe

Summary: Season: 4 Episode: 8 After the Show references. Howard Delhomme is fixated on Catherine Willows and he will do what it takes to make sure she knows. ...Grillows...

6

Chapter 3

Howard led Catherine from his dark room in the basement, up to his kitchen. "Make your self at home." he smiled, forcing her to sit at the table.

"Of course." he began as he revealed a pair of handcuffs "I don't want you to try and run. You might hurt yourself. I need you at your best for the shoot."

Catherine was too weak to resist and Howard was able to cuff her in place. "Howard, my friends are going to be looking for me, my mom, my daughter. They are all going to be looking for me."

"Your friend Mr. Grissom?" he turned from what he was doing to see her reaction "He's your 'friend' isn't he?"

Catherine didn't respond

"Or is he more then that?" Howard paused "Because he looks at you like he wants to be. He's very protective of you."

Catherine looked up at him "He's my friend."

"It's clear that he wants more then that." Howard shrugged "Well they won't find us anyway. I made sure to leave your things behind in case they would try and find you. But you don't have to worry. It's just you and me."

"You have to let me go." she told him "You can't keep me here forever."

Howard nodded "I know...are you hungry?"

* * *

><p>"Catherine Willows was last seen this evening, by her mother, who said she left the house just after nine thirty pm. Gil," Brass motioned toward him "Spoke with Catherine at nine forty five and Catherine told him she was on her way, but she never showed up. Her vehicle was located six miles from here, on route sixteen, her cell phone, her keys and wallet were found in her purse, which was left behind, indicating this was not a robbery. We have reason to believe a Mr. Howard Delhomme who was brought in for questioning earlier this morning may be involved in her disappearance. So here's what we are going to do, I need on team out on route sixteen to search the area. Catherine could still be out there. I want you." he pointed to a group of officers "to search the Delhomme residence for any sign of Catherine, I have put an APB out on Mr. Delhomme's car, when we find him I want to be the first to know, No one talks to him until I talk to him!"<p>

Gil watched as task force team members left the room. "I want my team out there."

Brass nodded "We are taking all the people we can. Warrick is on his way back in, Nick and Sara are on there way to the Delhomme residence."

Gil nodded "I should go talk to her mother; let her know what's going on before she hears it from someone else."

* * *

><p>"Why did you bring me here?" Catherine looked up from her seat at Howard's kitchen table. "I don't understand what you want from me!"<p>

Howard sat across from her and fiddle with his camera. "I told you." he looked through the camera at her "I want to take your picture."

Catherine turned her face away from him, but she didn't respond.

"You're so beautiful;" he stood up and walked over to her. "Beauty like yours should be captured and cherished forever." he knelt down in front of her.

"Did you kill her?" she asked ignoring his comments. "Is Julie dead?"

Howard smiled faded "I don't think we should take about that right now." he stood up "I have errands to run."

"Howard." she called him by his name "Let me go."

Howard ignored her; he placed his camera on the table and pulled out a key. "I want you to be comfortable." he unlocked the handcuffs that kept her in her chair. "Don't get any ideas." he warned showing her the taser he held.

"Where are we going?" he asked as he shoved her forward.

Howard didn't respond

"Howard?" she asked again hoping he didn't hear the fear in her voice. "Where are we going?"

"I don't want you to hurt yourself while I am gone." he ran his hand through her hair.

Catherine tried to pull away from his touch

"Its alright." he smiled opening the door to his cellar.

"I'm not going in there." she whispered, just loud enough for him to hear.

"It's only for a while. I have some supplies to pick up." he pulled out his taser "I don't want to use this."

"Howard?" she spoke again "I...-"

"Stop saying my name like that." he pushed her forward and shocked her. "You always make this harder then it has to be."

Catherine maintained consciousness, but once again her knees refused to hold her up. She watched helplessly as Howard closed the cellar door and left her in the dark. She listened as her bolted the door and left the house.

* * *

><p>"Gil?" Lily answered the front door to see Grissom on the other side. Instantly she saw the look of concern in his face. "Oh no." she backed away from the door as Gil entered "Something's wrong."<p>

"I can't stay." he sighed "But I didn't want to do this over the phone, and I didn't want you to hear it from anyone else."

Lily nodded and sat on the couch "Is she..." she trailed off

"She's missing."

"Missing?" Lily repeated "What do you mean missing?"

"Her car was found about seven miles from here, her purse, her wallet. Everything was where it should have been."

"Except my daughter..." Lily cut him off

"We have the best of the best out looking for her. We are doing everything we can to find her and bring her home."

Lily nodded too shocked to speak very many words

Gil sat next to her "I'm going to bring her home Lily. Catherine is going to be okay."

Lily sighed "How could this have happened. Who would take her from us?"

"Catherine interviewed a suspect in a case we were working on early this morning. He seemed to be taken by her." Gil recalled the comments in his mind that Howard had made during the interrogation. "I never thought he would..." he trailed off

"I can't lose her." Lily spoke up "Lindsey can't lose her." she paused "Lindsey, how am I going to tell Lindsey?"

Gil took her hand in his "If you want I can be here when you tell her."

Lily nodded "That might be good. She'll need reassurance."

Gil sighed "I hate to do this to you right now, but we may need you to come down to the station and give a statement."

"Because I was the last one to see her;"

Gil nodded "We need to develop a time line."

Lily nodded "Lindsey is asleep."

Gil stood up from the couch "I'll wake her."

* * *

><p>Catherine wasn't sure how long she had been in the dark cellar, or how much longer she had before Howard would return, but she was certain she had to come up with a plan. She slowly felt her way across the bare wall to feel out the cellar door. She tried the door knob, which she knew would be locked.<p>

"Hello?" she yelled hoping she might get lucky. She didn't call out for long and decided to search for a light.

She carefully stepped forward, not wanting to fall or trip. She stuck out her hands and searched for a cord or a switch. Within seconds she found the cord, pulled and light filled the once dark room.

Catherine let out a sigh of relief as she looked around. The room was filled with boxes labeled with names. Catherine quickly took note of the box marked 'Julie'.

"Julie?" she whispered to herself as she opened the box and began to rummage through its contents.

"Howard was her photographer." she muttered pulling out a bag filled with head shots of the missing Julie Waters. In the bottom of the box she found a pair of nylons, after pulling them out she saw the dried blood on the inside of the box.

Catherine shoved the box away. "She's dead." she spoke coming to her own conclusions.

She then looked around and began to search for something she could use to defend her self.

"Did you find anything interesting?"

Catherine froze when she heard Howard's voice behind her.

"It's not really polite to go through other peoples things."

Catherine slowly stood up and turned to face him "You killed her didn't you?" her heart began to race.

Howard stepped forward.

"Don't come any closer." she put her hands out to keep distance between them. "You killed her."

"It was an accident." he admitted

"That's bull; I wouldn't be here if it was an accident."

"I have no reason to lie. Come out of there and I will tell you what happened, while you get ready for your photo shoot."

Catherine shook her head "You go first."

"Okay." Howard turned and headed into the kitchen

Catherine watched as he turned his back to her.

"Hey!" Howard yelled as he dropped the bag he was holding to chase after her.

Catherine raced through the living room of his house and toward the front door. She yanked on the handle in attempts to escape, but the chain that locked the door from the inside was still in place. "Shit!" she muttered as her heart raced. She slammed the door shut and tried to remove the lock.

Howard was on her in seconds. He slammed her forward pinning her to the door. He took her hands in his and forced them behind her back.

"No!" Catherine screamed "Please!"

"I warned you!" he scolded her like child.

"Howard." she felt her eyes filling with tears as pain shot up her arm "You're hurting me! Please stop!"

Howard ignored her. He pulled her away from the door and slammed her to the floor. "Shut up!" he screamed in frustration "Shut your mouth!"

Catherine managed to pull her hands from his grasp and push off of her body.

"No!" she yelled again as he flipped her onto her back and straddle her chest. "Get off me!" she reached up to hit him, but her slammed her hands to the ground and held them down.

Catherine tried to catch her breath. "Please." she begged between sobs "Please stop."

Howard looked down at her. "Don't cry." he wiped a tear with his free hand. "You will ruin your make-up."

Catherine squirmed underneath him at his touch. "Stop." she whispered in defeat. "Don't." she turned her face "Don't touch me!" she screamed as she felt the hand from her face began to trace a line down her neck and chest.

Howard gazed down at Catherine and watched as she struggled beneath him. "I had my way with Julie." he leaned closer to Catherine's face "but she fought me just as much."

Catherine stopped fighting against him and watched him as he looked at her. Howard smiled and licked his lips.

"No." she screamed as Howard pulled her by the back of her head to her feet. Catherine tried in vein to break free from him.

"Howard!" she yelled his name "You don't have to do this!"

Howard swung her around so she was in front of him. "I've laid out your dress." he whispered dragging her into a bedroom and shutting the door behind them.

"There;" he pointed "Isn't it beautiful, it will show off those legs." he spoke as he walked in circles around her.

Catherine shook her head in defiance

"It's for the pictures Catherine." he whispered

Catherine glared at Howard, anger was rising inside of her and she couldn't control it. "I'm not posing for any pictures!" she screamed

Howard took a step forward, and extended his hand that held the dress. "You can put it on, or I can put it on!"

Catherine didn't make a move.

Howard moved closer and Catherine stepped backward. "I hate to do this to you because your beauty shines best when your awake." he whispered; taking out his taser.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Title: Fixation

Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Rating: M to be safe

Summary: Season: 4 Episode: 8 After the Show references. Howard Delhomme is fixated on Catherine Willows and he will do what it takes to make sure she knows. ...Grillows...

Chapter 4

* * *

><p>Catherine felt the shock run through her body as she collapsed to the floor.<p>

Howard stood over her and smiled with slight satisfaction. "You know I don't like to use it." He spoke referring to the taser. "But sometimes I'm left without a choice."

Catherine didn't respond in her helpless state and was unable to fight back as Howard bent down beside her and began to unbutton her shirt.

"I don't know why you are afraid of me." He tried to sooth her "I'd never hurt you on purpose."

Catherine tried to ignore him as she felt the cool air wash over her bare skin, she remained motionless as her lifted her back off of the floor to remove her shirt.

"This dress will look amazing on you." He smiled reaching for her belt

* * *

><p>Gil stood with his kit in hand staring at Catherine's abandon vehicle. "Did you find anything?" he spoke, asking Greg, who was now processing any possible evidence.<p>

Greg emerged from the driver seat of the vehicle. "A few sets of prints on the door handle and the steering wheel." he paused taking a small container full of colored specks to Gil. "These were found at the car dump sight and in the back seat of her vehicle."

Gil took the container from Greg.

"It looks like confetti but I'm.."

"It's not confetti." Gil cut Greg off "There a type of ID tag." He paused "From a taser gun."

Greg made a face

"Anytime a taser is deployed it drops these tags." He held up the container. "These small tags are unique to every taser gun and are used as identification purposes. A serial number and contact information for the owner of the gun is stored in a data base to help us locate the owner if need be."

"It would make sense as to why Catherine didn't fight back. There was no sign of a struggle. He must have caught her by surprise."

"Yeah;" Gil nodded trying not to imagine the worst. "I'm going to work on this."

* * *

><p>"Beautiful." Howard smiled slipping a new roll of film in his camera. "You're very lucky."<p>

Catherine turned her face from the camera lens "I'd hardly call it luck." She muttered.

"It doesn't have to be this way." Howard finished his task and stepped toward her "This could be fun for the three of us."

Catherine watched a she walked toward the closet "The three of us?" she asked confused to what he had meant.

"She was feisty; I had to dose her to knock her out." Howard spoke pulling a woman out from behind the door.

Catherine's eyes widened in horror;

"I thought it would be fun to shoot you both together in some of the shots." He commented dragging the women by her bound legs.

"I already dressed her." He spoke calmly.

Catherine watched in horror as her hopes slowly began to die.

"Wake-up;" Howard spoke softly as if the women were a sleeping child

The unidentified women slowly opened her eyes. Instantly at the sight of Howard she began to scream into the cloth that was stuffed into her mouth.

Unable to cover her ears, Catherine closed her eyes to try and block out the sights and sounds of the scene infront of her.

"Now, now;" Howard pulled the women to her feet. "We have a visitor." He smiled kissing her cheek. "Say hello."

He violently swung the women around so she was facing Catherine. The women's body trembled in Howards grip, her hair was matted, and her arms were bruised and a trail of dried blood could be seen on her thigh.

Catherine tried hard to block out the thoughts of what had happened to the women before she had arrived.

"Are we ready?" Howard pushed the frail women to the floor and she scrambled to sit next to Catherine.

"Wer…w…we're...going t...t...to di...ie." the women struggled to speak as her frame trembled uncontrollably.

* * *

><p>"Howard Delhomme." Brass read the name off of the computer screen<p>

"Son-of-a bitch!" Gil snapped slamming his fist on the table. "We had him!"

"We didn't have him Gil." Brass corrected him, knowing it wouldn't do any good.

"You shouldn't have allowed him to speak with her. You fed her to him like bait."

"I did what I had to do, to get the bastard talking." Brass defended himself

"He has her, he has her because you felt the need to flaunt her in front of him, he didn't talk; he jerked us around and look at where it got us!"

"He fooled us all Gil."

"No." Gil shook his head "Just you!"

Brass didn't respond as he watched Gil storm out of his office.

"Gil!" Greg raced to catch up with the angry man. "A hit came back on the prints I found."

"Howard Delhomme." Gil spoke before Greg could finish.

"Yeah." Greg sighed "I 'm sorry that…"

"Don't." Gil held up his hand "Let's just get her back."

* * *

><p>Gil reached his office and stepped inside. He quickly slammed the door behind him and started toward his desk.<p>

"Gil."

Gil looked up "Lily?" he greeted Catherine's mother.

"What are you doing here?"

"I couldn't sit at home and wait. I had to do something, anything."

Gil nodded and sat next to her on his couch.

"Have you found out anything?"

Gil nodded again "We've confirmed who has taken her."

"It's the same man you mentioned before?"

"Yes." He sighed

"And?" Lily questioned "Do you know where he is?"

Gil stood up from the couch "We are looking into it."

"Looking into it?" Lily replied "Why aren't they at his home, tearing it apart?"

"They have searched his place. She's not there."

"Well then where?"

Gil shrugged "I don't know."

"What's his name?"

"Howard, Howard Delhomme."

"What did he do?" Lily was curious and afraid to know.

"It's not going to make this any easier." He tried to convince her

"What did he do?" she asked again

"This isn't the first woman to go missing, we are convinced that he is responsible for the disappearance of Julie Waters."

"The young women from the news?"

Gil nodded "We think…"

"You think she's dead don't you?"

Gil looked up, but before he could respond Lily spoke again.

"The women from the news; is she dead?"

"We don't know." Gil replied

"You said she questioned him! Why the hell wasn't he in jail?"

"We couldn't keep him he…."

Lily cut him off "You let, that monster go so he could prey on more women! On my daughter!"

"I'm sorry." Gil replied knowing it wasn't going to change anything.

"You don't know where she is, you don't know where either of them are. How are you going to bring her home if you don't know anything?"

"We are doing the best we …"

Lily cut him off again "She trusts you with her life, how could you let this happen!" she began to sob. "She loves you! How could you let this happen to her? To Lindsey?"

Gil felt his own tears well up in his eyes. He had to get out of here. He knew Lily wasn't blaming him, she was distraught, and when you were this upset, you said things you didn't mean.

"I'm sorry." He said once more and left the room

* * *

><p>"I really wish you would smile." Howard walked toward Catherine who refused to look at him or the flashing camera.<p>

"You've been blessed with such beauty." He pulled her face to his "I want to capture that."

Catherine tried pulling away from his touch "Get your hands off of me."

Howard ignored her demand "You don't get it do you?"

Catherine pulled her face away once more, but Howard was quick.

"Stop this!" he snapped pulling her to her feet by her face.

"You very disobedient!" he slammed her against the backdrop. "You need to be taught a lesson." Howard shoved once more and the backdrop collapsed behind them.

Catherine struggled against him as he pushed his body against hers. Howard straddled her waist and watched as she tried in vain to throw him off of her.

"It's hard to play with your hands tied behind you back." He smiled "But it won't stop me."

Catherine closed her eyes and screamed.

Howard clamped his hand over her mouth. "Shut up!" he screamed.

Catherine's mouth opened again, causing Howard's hand to shift. Taking advantage of this, Catherine bit down.

"Fuck!" Howard screamed as he pulled his hand back. "You bitch!" he swore. "You fucking bitch!"

Catherine tried getting to her feet, but in anger Howard kicked out his leg, causing her to slam back to the ground.

"Stop!" The women bound to the bed post screamed at Howard. "Please. Stop!" she called again reaching up with her loose hand to untie her restraints.

Howard ignored her pleas, and Catherine's and continued his brutal attack.

"I tried!" he snapped bending down next to Catherine. "I tried." He repeated, bringing his closed fist down against her cheek.

Catherine whimpered as his fist connected with her face. "Stop!" she pleaded "Howard!"

Howard ignored her and brought his fist down again.

Catherine tried turning away from the blows, but with bound hands she wasn't able to protect herself.

Howard let go of Catherine's bruised face and stood over her.

Catherine tried to pull her body away, but the room wouldn't stop spinning.

Howard watched with satisfaction at the pain written on Catherine's face. "I warned you." Howard bent back down sat on her chest, causing her to gasp for air.

"I've tried to be nice to you, I've been nothing but good to you." He sneered at her pressing more of his weight on her.

Catherine closed her eyes and struggled to catch her breath.

"Look at me." He demanded

Catherine ignored him and focused on her breathing.

"Look at me!" he demanded again, angered that she was ignoring his commands.

Catherine still didn't respond and she didn't open her eyes.

Howard grabbed her face and squeezed.

Catherine's eyes shot open.

"Good girl." He smiled moving his hand up her thigh. "Good girl."

"Wait." Catherine spoke, as she felt his hand move under the dress "Howard." she spoke, stress apparent in her voice.

Howard ignored her as she had done to him. He kept his eyes on her, his stare was letting her know he was in charge.

Catherine's breathing became shallow as his hand found the band of her panties.

"Howard." She spoke as tears began falling from her eyes. "Please."

Howard lowered himself to her and kissed her lips, at the same time his hand removed her undergarment.

Catherine turned her head to the side, refusing to look at him.

Howard's second victim slowly stood from the bed.

"Run." Catherine mouthed to her as Howard's mouth assaulted her neck.

The women froze in fear.

"Run!" Catherine mouthed again, and the women took another step toward freedom.

Howard suddenly stopped his violation of Catherine, turned to the young women and smiled. "Going somewhere?"

"Run!" Catherine screamed at the women with the last amount of energy she had before dropping her head to the floor and giving into the darkness.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Title: Fixation

Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Rating: M to be safe

Summary: Season: 4 Episode: 8 After the Show references. Howard Delhomme is fixated on Catherine Willows and he will do what it takes to make sure she knows. ...Grillows...

* * *

><p>Chapter 5<p>

The glare of sunlight broke through the boarded up window and shone on Catherine's face. She slowly tried to open her eyes and discovered her left to be swollen. Wincing in pain she pulled her body into a sitting position.

The house was quiet and she assumed she was alone, looking around the room she discovered she had been moved.

"Don't move to fast." Howard spoke as he entered the room and white bag in hand. "You're pretty banged up. I don't want you to cause any more pain."

Catherine slumped back on the wall behind her. She was far too tired and weak to even hold herself up.

"That's a nasty bump you have." Howard commented as he knelt down beside her.

"You did it." She muttered turning away from him.

"You know I had to do what was necessary. You weren't co-operating and you know that you have too. You know I get frustrated. I untied your hands" He smiled "I thought you might be more comfortable while I was away."

Catherine struggled to control her emotions as she listened to Howard condone his actions.

"I'm going to clean you up." Howard whispered, placing his hand on her cheek. "Your photo won't be pretty with that nasty bruise and all that blood."

"Please. I want to go home." Catherine locked eyes with him as her turned her face to his, tears began to fall down her cheeks. "Let me go." She pleaded "I just want to see my little girl."

Beaming, Howard cupped her chin. "This is your home."

"No." she replied as her sobbing became uncontrollable. "Please. Let me go."

Howard's expression didn't change as he watched Catherine break down.

"I didn't want this to happen." Howard stood up. "I didn't think you would feel so lonely this quickly."

"I brought you something." he stood told her, standing up.

Catherine watched as Howard pulled a freshly washed dress out of the white bag.

"It will look better on you, with your skin tone, your figure and your legs." He smiled "Lisa didn't appreciate the beautiful things I brought for her."

Catherine watched as he displayed the dress to her. She recognized that dress. "Lisa?" she repeated the name, referring to the woman Howard had pulled from the closet.

"She wouldn't stop screaming." He hung the dress on a nail that protruded from the wall. "I didn't want to hurt her that way. But she was out of control."

"Where is she Howard?" Catherine inquired not sure if she wanted to know the answer.

"She's sleeping." He sighed "Like the angel she was."

"Sleeping?"

Howard nodded "Do you want to see her?"

Catherine opened her mouth to reply, but Howard was on her before the words were formed.

"Where are you taking me?" Catherine asked as he pulled her to her feet.

Howard ignored her and dragged her from the room.

"No..." Catherine gasped when she was revealed. In the doorway across the hall, Catherine saw the body of the woman she now knew as Lisa.

"You killed her?" Catherine yelled all the while attempting to pull away from him.

"Stop;" Howard whispered "She's wasn't good enough."

"You killed her!" Catherine repeated jerking away again.

Howard lost hold of Catherine and she crashed to the floor. "I wanted her." Howard sighed bending down next to the body. "I had hoped for amazing photos." He frowned at the sight of Catherine's disgust. "I did it for you. She couldn't hold a candle to you. She was nothing that you are."

"You're crazy!" Catherine screamed, struggling to get to her feet. "You're insane!" she turned and ran down the hallway.

"Where do you think you're going to go?" Howard watched her. "Do you think you two are the first women I've had here?"

Catherine ignored him and raced around the sealed house. Ignoring the pain the coursed through her body, she banged and screamed in hopes to get the attention of someone on the outside.

Howard sauntered into the kitchen to find Catherine rummaging through cabinets and drawers.

"What are you looking for?" Howard sat down at the table and folded his hands.

Catherine ignored him and the pain and tore the cupboards apart. She soon concluded she wasn't going to find anything she could defend herself with and she slid to the floor in defeat.

"Now;" Howard stood over her. "Let's get you cleaned up."

"No!" Catherine slapped at his hands. "Don't touch me!" she lunged forward, catching Howard off guard. The two slammed to the floor and Catherine started swinging.

Howard quickly over powered her and slapped her across the face. Catherine fell off of him and landed on her back. Howard flipped her over and pulled handcuffs from his pocket. "You can't make me hurt you like I did to Lisa. You're one of the special ones and I'm not done with you yet." he sneered, wiping the blood from his split lip.

He then pulled Catherine up once more and shoved her toward the bathroom.

* * *

><p>"Hey Grissom?"<p>

Gil looked up from his position in the break room, to find Nick approaching him.

"Brass has been paging you!"

Gil didn't respond as he pulled his pager from his pocket.

"We got a lead. Howard was spotted about three blocks from here in a hardware store." he paused. "The car he was driving is registered to an Edward Stoller. Brass is checking out the listed address.."

"A hardware store?" Gil repeated taking the slip of paper Nick extended to him. "A shovel?" Gil sighed knowing it could mean many things and none of them were good. "He purchased bleach, rope, and a tarp." Gil took the second receipt. "A dry cleaning bill?"

"He paid cash." Nick added before Gil could ask.

"So we don't have him."

Nick shook his head "Not yet, but the clerk at the cleaners recognized him from the news cast and gave us that receipt. He said he comes in at least twice a week. Brass is setting up surveillance. It seems Howard has more clothing to pick up."

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Title: Fixation

Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Rating: M to be safe

Summary: Season: 4 Episode: 8 After the Show references. Howard Delhomme is fixated on Catherine Willows and he will do what it takes to make sure she knows. ...Grillows...

Chapter 6

* * *

><p>"Edward Stoller?" Brass held up his badge to the man that answered the door.<p>

"Yes?" the man nodded "Can I help you?"

"Do you know this man?" Brass held up the picture of Howard.

"Yeah." the man answered. "That's Howard. Did you find my car?"

Brass furrowed a brow "How do you know him?"

"We worked together for a while, as photographers at a modelling agency."

Brass looked over at Gil and back to Edward. "Do you know where he is right now?"

Edward shrugged "No, but he was supposed to bring my car back last night and he never showed up. I tried calling him at his studio, at his house and on his cell, but he won't pick up"

"His studio;" Gil cut in. "What studio?"

"Howard said he purchased an old house and he was using it to get back in the business. He asked to borrow my car to transport his equipment."

"Do you know where this studio is?" Gil asked, well aware that no record of a second address had been found in Howard's file.

"No." Edward admitted "But I can call him again and see if he answers." he showed the phone to Gil, who took down the number. "And if he does I can get the address."

"That would be good, why don't you do that." Brass spoke up

* * *

><p>"There's that beautiful face." Howard smiled as he wiped the dried blood from Catherine's skin.<p>

Catherine cringed as his fingertips caressed her cheek.

"How is that feeling?" Howard inquired pointing to the bruise around her eye. "Can you see any better?"

Catherine watched as Howard played doctor but she didn't respond.

"I'll get you something to help with the pain after we take care of Lisa."

Catherine remained quiet as the water from the shower cascaded down on her naked frame. Her body began to shiver when the warmth of the water faded.

"Cold." she whispered ignoring Howard's comment "I'm cold."

"Okay." he smiled kissing her forehead like a child. "I'll get you a towel."

Howard grabbed the towel he had set out for her. "Stand up." he ordered

Catherine kept her knees pulled tight against her body and closed her eyes, her cuffed hands were going numb and the sharp pain she was feeling in the rest of her body was becoming unbearable.

"You shouldn't be ashamed of your body." he complimented her "It's beautiful."

Still Catherine refused to move.

"I get it." he closed his eyes and passed her the towel. "You're shy."

"My hands." she whispered.

Howard opened his hands. "I can't remove the cuffs. Not after the stunt you pulled."

"I can't feel my hands." she muttered trying to fight her emotions.

Howard watched her for a moment and reached into his pocket, pulled out the keys to the handcuffs and gently released her hands.

"I don't want you to think of me as insensitive." he whispered

Catherine rubbed her numb hands together to get the blood flow back to normal. "Thank you." she spoke as he placed the towel over her shoulders.

"I just want you to be happy. I don't li..."

Howard was interrupted by the vibrating of his cell phone, but he ignored it.

"I don't like to see you upset, and unhappy. I..." he tried to finish once more when his house phone then began to ring. Howard waited for the ringing to stop and the answering machine cut in.

On the machine, Edward demanded Howard pick up the phone.

"You can put this on for now." he handed her a bathrobe. "Excuse me." Howard sighed in aggravation and walked out of the bathroom.

"Hello?" he answered

"Howard?" Edward Stoller was irate "Where the hell are you?"

On the other end of the line Howard tried to make excuses, and convince Edward to let him keep the car a few hours more.

"I want my car back now Howard, you were to have me car back twenty-four hours ago!"

Brass and Gil watched intently as Edward conversed with Howard and without success tried to trace the call.

"I want my car back Howard, I want it back now or I'm calling the cops and they will come and get it!"

* * *

><p>Catherine watched from her position in the shower where she spotted a stainless steel nail file. Stepping out of the tub, she inched toward the counter waiting for the moment Howard would turn his back to her.<p>

Howard looked up from the phone call he was listening to and smiled at Catherine, and as she had anticipated he then turned his back attempting to block the conversation. He had no intentions on appearing weak in front of her.

Catherine reached for the file and pulled on the robe, she quickly hid the nail file in the cuff of her sleeve and took her place on the edge of the tub and waited.

Howard hung up the phone and returned to the bathroom.

"All better." he smiled taking his taser out of the drawer. "Now, we should get you dressed."

Catherine eyed the taser and concluded that now was not the time for her to strike against Howard.

"Your dress is waiting for you." he gave her a shove into the bedroom. "I have to run a few errands, but I will be back. I trust you won't disappoint me."

Catherine nodded. Howard caressed her cheek. "When I get back we will be free of interruptions."

Catherine waited until the door closed behind him before she cringed at his touch. She then sat on the bed and listened to the silence of an empty house.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Title: Fixation

Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Rating: M to be safe

Summary: Season: 4 Episode: 8 After the Show references. Howard Delhomme is fixated on Catherine Willows and he will do what it takes to make sure she knows. ...Grillows...

Chapter 7

* * *

><p>Howard watched cautiously as he pulled in the parking garage of National bank. He knew by now the police would be looking for Catherine and that meant they were looking for him.<p>

"Howard!"

Edward approached the man that had taken his car and was now being hunted by the police. "This is it Howard this is that last time you do this to me."

"I lost track of time. I'm sorry." Howard spoke defending himself. "It won t happen again."

Edward nodded. "You're damn right it won't; you take my car for days at a time. You have the police banging on my door. What the hell have you done?"

"The police?" Howard cut him off. "The police came to you?" he looked around again; certain that Edward was setting him up. "Did they follow you here?" Howard asked pulling out a gun. "Are you setting me up?"

Edward raised his hands as if to surrender. "Howard?" He backed away from the man. "Calm down."

"I have to take your car again." Howard snapped, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead. "I won't let you help them take her from me."

Edward backed away from the gun that was now pointed at him. "I'm just here to get me car Howard, I..

Before Edward could finish a shot rang out and he fell to the ground.  
>Two cars down, a woman screamed as Howard rushed toward her, pushed her aside and jumped in to her car.<p>

In the distance Brass was quick to get on his radio. "Howard is on the move, in a red four door Taurus. Do not approach, he is armed, follow him close but be discreet we need him to take us to CSI Willows."

Quickly and discreetly an unmarked truck was quick on Howard s tail as he sped through the streets of Las Vegas.

* * *

><p>"What did you find?" Gil asked as Nick pulled papers from the backseat of Edward Stollers civic.<p>

Nick looked up at the man. "Journal entries." he replied holding up a small journal.

"Five different entries all describing time spent with Julie Waters, and several other women. I sent the names to Sara, she is checking the missing persons data base to see if we get any hits on some of the names in his list." he paused as Gil watched him intently.

"And?" Gil spoke knowing he had something more;

"An entry dated two days ago." he handed Gil the book. "He talks about Catherine."

Gil took the book and read the log Howard had written the day he met Catherine in the interrogation room. "**_I can't stop thinking about her."_** Gil read aloud. **_"She has a beauty that can't be denied. There is just something so amazing in her. I see the way he looks at her"_** Gil assumed Howard was referring to him. **_"He is very protective, he is very in love. But it won t be a problem."_** Involuntarily Gil could feel his fist begin to clench, but he continued _**"I have to have her. I WILL have her."**_

Gil handled the book back to Nick so he could bag it. "Anything else? he asked

"Receipts;" Greg spoke from the front seat. "It seems Howard has had a few different rental properties in the past year. We are tracking down the owners of his two most recent to see if we can get some addresses. We can only assume these are places he may take his victims."

"We never assume anything." Gil retorted putting his hand to his head.

"Migraine;" Greg inquired

Gil sighed "It's nothing; She's been gone long enough. Let's just find her."

Greg nodded and pointed as Brass approached the three men.

"What happened?" Gil asked, taking note of the bothered look on his face.

"They lost him." Brass muttered "Son of a bitch!" he sneered turning as he walked away from Gil.

Gil sighed as he removed his glass and pinched the bridge of his nose.

They had lost Howard again, Howard was angry and he was on his way back to Catherine. Gil tried to push the thoughts of the violent things Catherine might be going through as he climbed in to his vehicle. He rested his head on the steering wheel and tried to focus on the pain of his migraine. Anything was better than thinking of what might happen to Catherine. The pain from the thought of never seeing her again was worse than any migraine he would ever have.

* * *

><p>Catherine stood watching herself in the mirror. The thoughts she was having of never seeing her daughter again were making tears well in her eye. She looked down at the white dress that now covered her pale skin and cringed. She contemplated giving into him and making things easier for herself but she figured if she shared the same fate as Julie Waters, doing what Howard said wouldn't matter. And that fighting was her only chance of survival.<p>

Catherine sighed as she smoothed out the dress, simultaneously Howard burst through the bedroom door.

"Let's go!" he snapped.

Catherine took note of his frazzled appearance. This looked like a man who was quickly running out of time.

"NOW!" he yelled at her as he grabbed her arm.

"Where are we going?" Catherine reluctantly allowed the man to pull her through the kitchen and toward the garage.

"Get in." he pushed her towards the open trunk.

Catherine shook her head. "Howard? Where are we going?"

"Get in!" he demanded again. "Now;"

Catherine looked at the contents of the plastic covered trunk and her body started to tremble. A shovel, duct tape, garbage bags;

Catherine looked back at Howard who was now pointing a gun at her.

"I said now!" he screeched, poking the gun into her shoulder. "Move!"

Catherine closed her eyes as the first tears began to fall. She was certain that getting in the trunk meant the end of her life.

With one last attempt she begged for Howard to understand. "Please just let me go." she whispered. "Please just let me go home to my daughter."

Howard didn't respond with words, instead he cocked his gun, hoping to let her know he meant business, but again she didn't make a move.

"Damn it!" Howard shouted dropping the duffle bag he had slung around his shoulder and grabbed Catherine by the arm. "I said move!"

Catherine's body tensed and she knew if she wanted to survive she had to act fast.  
>As Howard pushed her toward the open trunk; Catherine pushed back.<p>

"No!" she screamed as she fought against him, as she gripped the nail file. "You don't have to do this!" she pushed back as Howard wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground.

Catherine kicked her feet against the truck to stop him from pushing her forward. "Howard, please!" she screamed as tears and the nail file fell. "Please don't!"

Howard had had enough and dropped her as her feet flew into the air once more. Catherine came crashing down on the concrete floor of the garage and instantly a searing pain of an injured tailbone shot through her body. Before she could even think about getting to her feet Howard was on her again.

"Stop;" She screamed again as Howard flipped her on to her stomach and pulled her arms behind her.

"You bitches always make it so hard." he sneered as he zip tied her hands in place.

Catherine continued to kick even though the pain was enough to pass out, if she wanted anything right now, it was to have him off of her.

Howard flipped her on her back, not caring about the pain he was putting on her, he held her up by her shirt and used the butt of his gun to subdue her.

Catherine could feel the warmth of her blood trickle as she hung her head in defeat. Howard pressed duct tape across her mouth and wrapped more around her head; he wasn't going to risk the tape coming off.

Catherine, through blurred vision from tears and dizziness watched him as he lifted her and dropped her into the trunk, the whole time praying silently to herself for a miracle.

"It's going to be okay." Howard smiled at her as he wiped the blood from his cheek. He hadn't realized it at the time but she had scratched him.

Catherine clamped her eyes shut as the tears continued, she didn't know what was worse; the pain she was experiencing or knowing that she was on her way to die.

* * *

><p>Gil watched intently at the screen of his cell phone hoping it would ring with the news that Catherine had been found. Since he had discovered her missing he hadn't even attempted to sleep, but now as he sat at his desk, exhaustion was creeping up on him.<p>

He closed his eyes for a second but all he could think about was what might be happening to the women he loved. He wondered for a second if he was ever going to see her again. He wondered if he would ever get the chance to tell her how he really felt, and was beating himself up inside for never having the courage. He hated the thought of never being able to tell her the truth.

"Cath;" he whispered to himself as he rubbed his hands on his face in attempts to wake himself up.  
>"Please be okay." he whispered. "Please be okay."<p>

Gil sighed once more as his head began to nod and his eyes began to close.

"Grissom!"

His eyes were only closed for a second when his office door flew open and Brass appeared.

"They've spotted the stolen car, Howard is driving but there is no sign of Catherine."

Gil was out of his chair in seconds, and followed quickly behind Brass.

"He just pulled in to his garage. He must be desperate to be coming back to his house, especially since he knows we are on to him."

"What's the plan?" Gil asked as he pulled on a bullet proof vest. "We don't even know if Catherine is with him."

Brass nodded as he headed down the hall toward the parking lot. We're going to get her back Gil."

Gil nodded as he climbed in next to Brass. "Lindsay can't lose her mother."

Bass nodded

"I can't lose her either." he added

Brass nodded again but didn't respond as they sped out of the lot.

* * *

><p>"We don't have much time." Howard spoke as he pulled an injured and stunned Catherine out of the trunk.<p>

The pain Catherine was feeling was taking its toll on her and Catherine didn't have much fight left in her.

She took note of her surroundings and quickly realized she was back in Howard's home where it all had begun with his call to 911.

"It will all be over soon." he added laying her down on the living room floor.

Catherine sighed as she tried to ignore the numbness in her hands. She watched as Howard paced back and forth in the hallway in front of her and she wondered what his next move was going to be.

"Howard Delhomme."

Howard and Catherine were both pulled from the train of thought they were on, at the sound of the loud speaker outside.

Howard ran to his front window and peered through the curtain. Police cruisers lined the street in front of his home and several swat team members could be seen spread out across the boulevard.

"We have you surrounded." was the next thing he heard and from his spot in the window he could see that Brass was the voice on the mega phone.

"I can see your friend." Howard spoke as he pulled Catherine off of the floor. "He's out there."

Catherine knew he was speaking of Gil; but even if she wanted to respond she couldn't.

Howard pulled up from the floor and led her toward the couch. He knew she was in pain and he took it upon himself to help her sit down.

"Do you want something for the pain? He whispered, reaching for the duct tape.

Catherine winced as she shifted her body away from him.

"Let's talk about Grissom." He smiled." I know you can't talk, but just nod."

Catherine didn't move;

"You've know him a long time?"

Catherine nodded

"He's your friend?"

Again Catherine nodded.

"You're lover?"

Catherine shook her head

"Interesting." Howard whispered "Maybe that's just wishful thinking." he smiled "You mean a lot to him. I can tell by the way he looks at you " He paused as he reached for the ringing phone. "Hello. He spoke into the receiver the whole time keeping his gun and his eye on Catherine. He knew that it would be one of many officers outside waiting for him.

"They want to negotiate." He smiled at Catherine again. "I have only one request." He spoke."Mr. Grissom."

* * *

><p>Grissom approached the door as Howard requested with his hands in the air. He knocked once and as he reached for the door knob, the door opened.<p>

Before him stood Catherine; Duct tape still in place.

Gil's heart sank instantly as he took in her battered appearance. "Catherine.", he whispered stepping toward her.

"Just a minute there;" Howard pulled Catherine back and held his arm around her throat and the gun to her temple.

"Howard." Gil stepped slowly toward him as they backed into the living room. "She's been through enough. Please just let her go. Let her go home to her family."

Catherine's body trembled uncontrollably as Howard clutched her tighter. "To her family." he paused "And you?" he added "You're being selfish Mr. Grissom. I am aware that you want her for yourself."

"She's in pain." Gil continued ignoring him "Pain that you caused her. Her daughter needs her. Catherine is all she has."

"Is Catherine all that you have?" Howard asked "Is she all that you need?"

Gil didn't respond

"Tick tock Mr Grissom, your answers could save her."

"What do you want me to say?" he sighed lowering his hands "Do you want me to tell you she's important to me?" he paused "She is, she always has been and always will be. I don't have much in my life, but she's one of the few things I do have, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. If you want me to tell you I love her. Than that's what I'll do."

"I never wanted to hurt her." Howard sighed "I just wanted to be as important to her as she is to me."

Gil nodded "I understand." He sighed "I feel the same way. I wake up every day hoping that she'll see me in a different light. That maybe one day I'll be something more to her than just her boss, more than just her friend."

"She's special." Howard spoke kissing the back of her head. "She's so special. " He paused taking a minute as if he was thinking something over. "I didn't touch her. I wanted to, but I didn't touch her." He added, cocking his gun. " Before it's over. I wanted you to know."

"Howard wait!" Gil stepped forward as the first blast rang out. Catherine clenched her eyes waiting for the bullet to hit her. But it never came. She opened her eyes as she felt her body falling backward.

"Catherine." Gil was next to her in seconds, pushing Howards limp body away from her.

"Catherine." He spoke her name again as he pulled at the duct tape. "It's okay." He whispered. "Hold still, You're okay."

Catherine ignored his request and pushed herself into him. Gil wrapped his arms around the sobbing, shaking women as police officers and the other members of his team entered the room.

TBC


End file.
